Switch replacement next step in network improvements

In the effort to improve our campus network infrastructure so that it can support faster network speeds, the next step will involve upgrading network switches across the campus. From September through November, the Office of Information Technology (OIT) will work in coordination with a local contractor to upgrade network switches in buildings throughout campus.

This work will involve rolling network outages, both wired and wireless, in the affected buildings which will result in up to two 1-to-2-hour outages per data jack. In order to reduce the impact of these outages, the work will take place between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. in administrative buildings and from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. in buildings with classrooms.

OIT will work with your departmental Computer Support Representative (CSR) to schedule and communicate outages in your building and make sure that they are sensitive to late-night or early-morning activities and special events in your building. You can learn who your CSR is at http://oit.colorado.edu/support-training/csr-lookup.

The upgrading of network switches is the next step toward enabling wired network speeds up to 1 gigabit per second which is a tenfold increase over our current network standard of 100 megabits per second. This change will also allow for improvements in our wireless network, making it possible to upgrade our wireless access points for increased speed and capacity.

You can learn more about the switch replacement project and find a list of buildings that will be affected by visiting http://oit.colorado.edu/projects/switch-upgrade. If you ever have questions about the campus wired or wireless networks or this project specifically, please contact the IT Service Center at help@colorado.edu or 303-735-4357 (5-HELP from a campus phone). E-mail and phone help is available Mondays through Thursdays, 7 a.m.-10 p.m.; Fridays 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.; and Saturdays and Sundays, noon to 6 p.m. Learn more at http://oit.colorado.edu/service-center.